al-Muqanna' al-Khurasani

Al-Muqanna al-Khurasani, the leader of a movement in the reign of the Abbasid caliph al-Mahdi, which lasted from 159 to 161 AH. He took part in the revolt of al-Muqanna. ²

Taqqush says that he placed a mask of gold on his face, claiming that it veiled the divine essence that had become incarnate in him, and he claimed divinity. According to the author, his call rested on incarnation and transmigration. He held that God created Adam and transformed Himself in his form, and that the soul of Adam passed to the prophets until it reached Abu Muslim and then dwelt in him. ²

Taqqush describes his movement as a continuation of the movements of Sanbadh and the Rawandiyya, and that it revived the teachings of Mazdak and abolished the religious obligations. The White-clad joined him in Bukhara and Sughd, and his followers raided the secure regions around Kish and Nasaf. ²

Sa'id al-Harashi defeated them, and al-Muqanna burned himself before he could be seized, in about 161 AH. The date in the museum's data is approximate and derived. ³